CHARLOTTE—For Duke fans, there was an eternally frustratingly mix of talent and flaws on last season’s Blue Devils squad.

When talent won the day, the Blue Devils were really good—they claimed wins against Michigan, Kansas, North Carolina and Florida State. But when the flaws were exposed, the Blue Devils could be really bad—they were crushed by Ohio State and North Carolina, and then there was the NCAA Tournament debacle against Lehigh.

“There was never anything consistent about how we played last year, individually or collectively,” senior Mason Plumlee said Wednesday at the ACC Media Day.

That wasn’t a secret. To hear someone on the team admit that, though, is refreshing.

So is watching Plumlee point the finger of responsibility at his own chest.

“I have to have a big year for us to have a big year,” he said. “I think those things go hand in hand. The coaches recognize that, and the players recognize that, too.”

Plumlee, an athletic 6-10 power forward, was projected as a first-round NBA pick last June but opted to return to school. The opportunity to keep the Lehigh game from being his final Duke memory was part of the decision, but it wasn’t the main thing.

“When I was looking at coming back,” Plumlee said, “coach (Mike Krzyzewski) sat me down and said, ‘You’ve gotten better each year, even though you may not be where you want to be. So, let’s get better again.’ That was one of the biggest things.”

Plumlee went from 3.7 points and 3.1 rebounds to 7.2 and 8.4 as a sophomore.

“After my freshman year, I said, OK, I’m going to rebound no matter what. They can depend on me for that,” he said. “And I ended up averaging eight or nine rebounds, whatever the number was. It was better. And last year, I wanted to be more aggressive, and I was, but not to the extent that I can be. This is a big year.”

He averaged 11.1 points and 9.2 rebounds last season, but the consistency wasn’t there. During a seven-game stretch in February, he only hit double-digit points once. In home losses to Miami and Florida State, Plumlee had nearly as many combined fouls (eight) as points (12).

“You really have to be the same player day-in and day-out because people are depending on you,” Plumlee said.